I've always been a voracious reader, especially of romance, and one thing I noticed consistently was that readers always wanted more of the protagonists and love interests they liked best. The problem with that, of course, is that when authors give characters a happily ever after, the last thing they want to do is take it away so that there's another story to tell. So when a friend and mentor suggested to me that I simply use the same protagonist and roster of love interests to write my romances, I knew that the idea had merit.
But I protested immediately anyway. "Nobody does that," I countered. (At least not anybody that I know of; I can't claim to be familiar with every corner of the romance world, since it's so big!) Her reply? "Exactly." That was when the light bulb went off over my head and I realized what she was getting at. There are so many great romance stories out there, so new authors have to stand out somehow, and this was my ticket to standing out.
Every story I write will star my ultimate protagonist, Rowan Barrow. The concept of getting to explore one character repeatedly is very appealing to me because it presents the opportunity for almost endless potential. I can focus on the aspects of her personality that fit each story best and still eventually get to delve into all of them, and I can explore how her reactions change and evolve over different periods of her life, or because of changing circumstances. Just like the readers, I don't have to leave her behind after I've just met her, and I think that's fun. And while Rowan's roster of love interests won't repeat as often as she does, they'll still pop up more than once.
Rowan is also plus-size. I know that what is actually considered plus-size is often subjective, so, for reference, Rowan is just a little over five feet tall and weighs slightly more than 210 pounds. That's my size, and even when I weighed less, I was made fun of and judged for it, so I do feel able to speak to the plus-size experience. That being said, Rowan is not a character who wants her whole life to revolve around her size, so while it's a theme that will persist in all of her stories, it will rarely be the center of them.
The stories I plan to tell will cover every genre and trope I can imagine, since my eventual goal is to have written in all of them. That way, there will be something for everyone. The only caveat is that I won't be venturing into the young adult realm, since I'll be writing always steamy, most often smutty romance, so all of the characters will be in the new adult age range or higher.
The great advantage is that even though all of these books will be connected tangentially because of the characters, they won't be connected by their plot, so if a trope isn't for you, you can just skip that story and wait for the next one and you won't have missed anything crucial. All stories will include trigger warnings as well so that it's easy to curate your reading experience.
The other fun thing about my books is that most of them were fanfiction first before they were turned into original works. Fanfiction is how I really started to practice the craft of writing, and I wanted to pay homage to that. It's definitely nice to have a rough draft ready to go before I start, plus I love the challenge of figuring out how to transition a story from being a love letter to fandom to potentially inspiring a new one. It's not always easy, but it's more than worth the effort.
I do want to point out that Gillian Walter is a pen name, since I pursue other business ventures under my real one. My fanfiction is posted under yet another that is a username rather than a real or pen name. I want to assure you that all of the fanfiction I adapt is my own, so if you find yourself noticing some similarities, you've probably read me before under my username. I just want to be absolutely clear that I would never take someone's work without their permission, even if I planned on changing it substantially.
As a final note, I am open to constructive feedback. Let me know not only which characters, genres, and tropes you want to see, but also what I can do better. One of my favorite things about the writing world is the interaction between authors and readers, so I am always interested in listening.
I hope you'll enjoy my take on romance. I'm so excited to be writing for you!
YOU ARE READING
Like Me for Me
RomanceBennett Hodge lost Rowan Barrow, the love of his life, in high school because he was a coward, but when chance brings them together again, he won't make the same mistake twice.
